Signal oscillators, such as RF signal oscillators, are used in a wide variety of applications. The applications include, for example, signal processing, data communication, circuitry testing, object detection and the like. A key characteristic is that the signal oscillators generate an oscillation signal having a stable oscillation frequency. Otherwise processing errors, communication errors, object detection and the like may not be suitably performed.
One environmental condition that impacts the oscillation signal is temperature. Changes in temperature result in unwanted changes in the oscillation frequency. The change is referred to as temperature drift.
One technique to compensate for temperature drift in voltage controlled oscillators (VCO) is to use a phase locked loop (PLL). This technique can compensate for temperature drift, however adding a PLL to a circuit adds complexity and cost. An alternative for frequency stabilization of a VCO is the use of high Q (dielectric) resonators with appropriate temperature coefficient. However, cost and effort for frequency centering by laser are high.
What is needed are techniques to mitigate or account for temperature drift without additional costly components.